Why have USL Championship club Sacramento Republic signed 13-year-old Da’vian Kimbrough to a professional contract?

The hunt for the next Alphonso Davies continues in American and Canadian soccer

Soccer teams in the United States have never been shy about signing young teenage players. Major League Soccer, especially, has prompted young talent, sometimes to the detriment of those players.  

The obvious player that sticks out is Freddy Adu, who signed a professional contract with DC United in 2004 at the age of 14 years, 168 days. You don’t have to be an American soccer fan to know about Adu. If you played FIFA or Football Manager in the mid-2000s, you probably remember the name at the very least. 

Although Adu had some bright moments and even intrigued Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson at one point, the midfielder flamed out nearly as quickly as he appeared on the American soccer scene.  

Adu hasn’t played professional soccer since 2018, and his career ended at the age of 29. The former DC United player was tipped as the “next Pele”, a tag that haunted plenty of other players throughout their careers.   

Adu isn’t the only player signed at an early age to fall by the wayside in U.S. soccer. Santino Quaranta was just 16 years and four months when he joined DC United in 2001. Quaranta became a good MLS 1.0 player, but drugs and alcohol derailed his career. Quaranta had too much, too soon. He retired in 2011 after just 11 seasons and 180 MLS matches.   

Both Adu and Quaranta should be cautionary tales for professional soccer clubs in the U.S. and aspiring players. Becoming a professional player at a young age isn’t always the right move.   

Of course, there are the players who started young and succeeded. Bayern Munich’s Alphonso Davies is the perfect example of a player to start as a teen in MLS and succeed on the world stage.  

Davies was only 15 years, eight months, and 15 days old when he debuted for Vancouver Whitecaps' first team. Now, Davies is a five-time Bundesliga champion, one-time UEFA Champions League winner, and two-time DFB Pokal champion. He also helped Bayern Munich win the UEFA Super Cup, the FIFA Club World Cup, and three DFL Super Cups.   

Davies is an exception to the rule that young teenagers signed by MLS teams succeed. Yet, it is Davies’ success in Europe and the transfer fee Vancouver received for him that are driving American and Canadian soccer teams to sign young teenagers to professional contracts.  

Da’vian Kimbrough becomes the youngest player to sign a professional contract with an American soccer club 

On Tuesday, it was announced that USL Championship (the second level of the U.S. soccer pyramid) club, Sacramento Republic (one of the best badges in American soccer) had signed Da’vian Kimbrough to a professional contract. The signing makes Kimbrough the youngest-ever professional soccer player in the U.S. at 13 years, five months, and 13 days old.   

The previous youngest players signed to professional contracts in U.S. soccer were New York City FC's Maximo Carrizo (14 years, 0 days old) and NWSL player Melanie Barcenas of the San Diego Wave (15 years, 4 months, 19 days). Interestingly, in March was contacted by the father of Brighton Lee Sagal, a 13-year-old who had signed a semi-pro contract with NPSL club San Fernando Valley FC. Although a similar age, San Fernando Valley are not fully professional.  

Kimbrough’s resume is fantastic. He joined Sacramento Republic’s soccer academy at 11 years old and played with the under-13 team. He tallied 27 goals in 31 games before moving up to the under-14 and under-15 groups the following season, scoring 34 times in 50 matches.   

This summer saw Kimbrough join up with the New York Red Bulls Academy as a guest player for the Bassevelde U-13 Cup in Belgium. The tournament featured 16 teams, including Celtic, Juventus, RB Leipzig, Benfica, and West Ham. Kimbrough won the tournament’s Most Valuable Player award thanks to scoring six goals. New York Red Bulls won the tournament, becoming the first MLS team to lift its trophy.   

According to The Athletic, MLS clubs were interested in signing Kimbrough, including the Red Bulls. But the teenager decided to stay close to home. Signing with Sacramento Republic makes plenty of sense, and Kimbrough leaves the option open for signing with a European club down the line. Joining an MLS academy may have made dealing with a European club more difficult. Scouts will have seen Kimbrough in Belgium and having played so well, will likely be on the radar of a few teams.   

What influenced Sacramento Republic to sign Kimbrough? 

Sacramento Republic’s decision to sign Kimbrough sounds great, especially for aspiring soccer players. Kids around America will believe with a little hard work they too can earn a professional soccer contract. If they want to sign my 10-year-old, great, go for it. But the reality is, Sacramento may have signed Kimbrough for their own gains.   

For one, Sacramento Republic have received plenty of publicity by signing Kimbrough. In a soccer pyramid that doesn’t feature promotion and relegation, there are few reasons for some sports fans to care about teams outside of MLS. It isn’t often USL Championship clubs get mentioned on The Athletic or other highly read sports websites. 

The other reason for Sacramento Republic to sign Kimbrough to a contract is to gain a transfer fee for the player, assuming he is sold to another club in the future.   

With the astronomical transfer fees being paid for young talent these days, the Quails could be in store for a nice windfall of cash in the future – I emphasise could. There is no guarantee a player will develop to become a professional, especially when they are 13.  

Looking at Sacramento Republic’s recent transfer dealings, transfer sales are nonexistent. The players who left the club in 2023 appear to have departed on free transfers. In January 2022, Sacramento Republic sold centre-back Hayden Sargis to DC United for around $150,000, according to reports. Sargis has played five times for DC United and spent time on loan with Loudoun United and Phoenix Rising. According to Sacramento Republic, Sargis was the third academy-developed player to sign with an MLS team. Sargis is the last player to be sold by the club, according to Transfermarkt. 

If Sacramento wants to be sustainable over the long term, then selling players to other teams is a must. While the club appears to have made $0 in 2023 on sales, they haven’t paid for players either, making all their signings on free transfers. 

Is a professional contract the right decision for a 13-year-old? 

At 13, I was in junior high, awkward, and trying to figure out what I wanted to do in life. Sure, I played sports, baseball being my best, and dreamed of playing in MLB. But at 13, I was in no way prepared for a life in professional sports, mentally or physically.  

My son is 10 and a good soccer player competing against strong players in England. He is just three years younger than Kimbrough, and I can’t imagine him training with grown men.  

Every year in Europe, there are some extremely talented kids younger and older than Kimbrough released from academies. Many of the players he competed against in Bassevelde will likely be released by those clubs, never making it to the professional level with any team.  

If Sacramento Republic believe Kimbrough can play first-team soccer right now, then he will be thrust into a world of playing against men. Some players will be 10 or 20 years older than him. These are men, not boys. The average age of Sacramento Republic’s squad is 25.6, according to Transfermarkt.   

This is no disrespect to the player. He has shown potential to play in age-appropriate tournaments. Yes, he played up an age or two in Sacramento’s academy, but there is a difference between playing against academy players and playing in open-age professional soccer. Kimbrough excelled against opposition near his age and not against men stronger and quicker.  

The worst result of playing Kimbrough in the first team would be shattering his confidence. The world of soccer is a shark tank and there are plenty of veterans ready to cut down young, promising players with hard tackles. Even teammates may take exception to a kid being signed to the team.  

Chasing the Alphonso Davies money 

Davies was sold for a then-MLS record $22 million in 2018. It is still the second-highest outward-bound transfer fee in MLS history. As MLS blogger Tom Bogart once wrote about the player:  

“Davies remains the poster boy for the best-case scenario with MLS exports; he's one of the world's top left-backs for a world-class team. Vancouver were compensated well, particularly since the deal was agreed on in the summer of 2018.”  

The desire to sell young talent to European clubs is fuelling American and Canadian soccer’s desire to sign teenagers, especially young ones under the age of 16, to professional deals. MLS’s 10 Youngest Players Signed in MLS All-Time list shows a group of boys that a lot of expectations were put on by clubs.   

A quick Transfermarkt search over the 10 Youngest Players Signed in MLS All-Time makes for some interesting reading. 

Two things are apparent from the above table. Firstly, MLS teams are signing young teenagers to professional contracts and playing them in their second teams. All the players with zero first-team appearances play in MLS Next Pro.  

Although it is considered the third tier of American soccer, MLS Next Pro is the development league for players not ready for the first team of the parent club. This allows players to grow, learn, and develop. Not everyone makes it to the first team, but the league shows MLS clubs are trying to nurture young players before thrusting them into the main squad. This is far different from the days of Adu and Quaranta.   

Secondly, the table shows clubs are uncovering talented American players that can be sold for a profit. Players from the U.S. are still seen as cheap options for European clubs. Finding talent to train, develop, and flip is the traditional way soccer teams make money outside of ticket sales. Finding the next Alphonso Davies is what every club in U.S. and Canadian soccer is trying to do.  

Maybe there are no ulterior motives besides giving a promising player a chance... 

Sacramento Republic may have no intention of playing Kimbrough in the first team. His signing could be a way to gain publicity for a club that averages 9,740 fans to home matches in the USL Championship.  

It is the third-highest attendance in the league. Despite being an enjoyable soccer league to watch, the USL Championship just can’t compete with MLS, Messi, and Apple.   

According to Sacramento Republic, “Kimbrough will be eligible to compete for Republic in USL Championship matches.” He will have his own training schedule as he attends school. 

Moreover, Kimbrough will train with “professional players on the first team” and develop in the academy. For now, the youngster will have the chance to develop and grow. Hopefully, he won’t be used in first-team matches as a ploy to drive in attendance. Perhaps Republic have no ulterior motives. Perhaps Kimbrough’s signing is for sporting reasons and to give the kid an opportunity.